Digital Health, Mobility Startups Among Focus for Hatch Finalists

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[Updated, 5:56 pm. See below] Austin — The organizers of the Hatch Pitch startup competition announced Thursday the finalists for this year’s contest to be held next month. [An earlier version of this paragraph mistakenly implied that the Hatch competition was part of this year’s South By Southwest festival. The competition is scheduled to take place at the same time as SXSW; it will not be an official part of the lineup.]

For the first time, the startups are arranged by category: digital health, connected world, and mobility (smart transportation alternatives). Thirteen startups were chosen; five of them are Texas-based, including Luminostics and BrainCheck, both of Houston.

The Hatch demo day has taken place at SXSW since 2012. Four companies have had an exit, including 2012 winner RideScout, which was acquired by Daimler AG, maker of the Mercedes-Benz, in 2014. In all, organizers say the 60 total Hatch pitch companies have collectively raised more than $180 million in funding.

Last year’s winner was Admetsys, which says it has developed an “artificial pancreas” which acts like a glucose control system for diabetic patients. The Boston-based company had completed three FDA-approved clinical trials at the time of the competition.

The companies in this year’s competition are:

Digital Health:

—BrainCheck: Software that measures and tracks your cognitive health. —Care Angel: A “virtual intelligent caregiving assistant”—a Siri for Seniors—that calls and checks-in on elderly loved ones by phone or landline (no smartphone required). —Integrated Bionics: A micro-sensor and analytics system for coaches to better design training programs for athletes. —Luminostics: Software that enables smartphones to act as medical devices that can accurately detect and quantify biological targets such as bacteria and viruses, from small samples, in less than 15 minutes.

Connected World Category

—Artiphon: A device that allows the user to “play” a guitar, piano, or other instruments. —Aquatricity: Maker of a power and water control system geared toward underserved communities. —Gest: A wearable device that tracks finger and hand movements that the company says can replace a keyboard. —Notion: A multi-purpose sensor that monitors your home and sends users alerts. —Sup: A social app that lets users see if their friends are nearby without, what the company says is the “creep factor.”